| | -
| 1 label |  |
|
|
-
-
| 1 label |  |
|
|
-
-
-
-
-
| 1 label |  |
|
|
-
| |  |
|
1 |
-
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 4.78 Miles |
434 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.78 Miles | 1 Hour 53 Mns | | 2.54 mph |
| 434 ft AEG | | | | |
|
|
| |
| Linked |
|
none
[ show ]
| no linked trail guides |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | -I haven’t been up in Rim Country nearly enough this year. Only once, six weeks ago, on the Pine Canyon-Bearfoot Trail. Usually, I do 3-5 Mogollon Rim hikes a year. This week, I set out to redress the imbalance.
I’ve hiked Woods Canyon Lake twice before, most recently in 2013. Which is a shame, because it is such a beautiful, peaceful, lake. (Despite the large, and often packed, campgrounds.) I'd much rather hike this a couple of times a week than Trail #100 behind the old el rancho.
In 2013, I saw a Great Blue Heron by the dam. This time, I spotted a chipmunk. I took my first picture standing up. When I realized he hadn’t spooked, I got down on my stomach. He was still calmly munching away, so I was able to crawl within three feet of him. Living near the campground, maybe he was waiting for a handout? Either way, pretty neat!
There aren’t a whole lot of flowers on this hike. Just about all of them are in the video. However, there was one blue flower that I saw fairly often. My crappy pocket camera did not do them justice their blue was so rich.
I had much more trouble than normal with smooge’s on the camera’s lens. Smooge’s don’t affect distance shot as much as closeups. (I’d say “macro”, but on a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS5, macro is more a wish than a mode.) Despite regularly wiping the lens, I didn’t wipe it often enough. I know I lost some flower shots as a result.
After I enjoyed a post hike beer and strawberry shortcake ice cream bar, my wife & I took off for the day’s main activity: Driving FR 34 / AZ-99 from the Mogollon Rim to Winslow. Yes, there is a highway between the two. I had hoped it would be dirt all the way, but it was paved north of the Chevelon Work Center, a small forest ranger community on West Chevelon Canyon, at Sand Point.
The foliage gets shorter and less dense, north of the Chevelon Work Center, until it becomes wide open plains. The only terrain features of any kind are a few distant mesas: Chevelon Butte and East Sunset Mountain.
Arizona is an open range state, and there’s a good chance you will encounter cattle on AZ-99, especially near one of the many roadside dirt tanks. One 10,000 gallon metal tank & pump well was covered with graffiti.
As AZ-99 nears Winslow, the terrain remains flat, but becomes scrub land, with occasional outcroppings of flat red sandstone boulders.
My wife and I had lunch at a Mexican place in Winslow. It was okay, but no beer, no plug.
Afterwards, we were too sweaty & tired to stand on the corner, so drove home on AZ-87. Both the drive on AZ-99 and AZ-87 were pleasant, with little traffic, until I began to encounter Phoenix  Drivers south of Pine. (I’m looking at you, Mr. Speed Up When Somebody Tries to Pass!)
Hike Video: [ youtube video ]
Drive Video: [ youtube video ] |
|
Wildflowers Observation Isolated
|
|
| _____________________
| http://prestonm.com : Everyone's enjoyment of the outdoors is different and should be equally honored. |
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
